Happy anniversary to me

Today is my anniversary. Dave and I are celebrating 9 years together. December 27, 2003 was the day that marked the beginning of a new chapter in my life. A day for which I'm grateful to Heavenly Father. I love that Dave loves me, and I love that I love him. I love our love and I love our life. Reasons why I love Dave: He is awesome He makes me laugh. He is smart. He has many, many interests. He makes me feel good about myself. He is a great dad. He has a kind heart. He is patient with me. He is awesome at backing up trailers. I don't know why, but it's kind of a turn on. He is a jack of all trades and a master of many. He has a curiosity about things that makes me want to learn. He is strong physically and emotionally. He doesn't want to be in the spotlight. He's not an attention seeker. He is not a know-it-all. We are parents to our three kids together. He doesn't belittle others. He is secure in who he is. He works hard to provide for our family. He is smart with money. He tempers my temper. He is mine for all eternity. And I am his. I love being around him. He puts up with me. He knows how to fix broken things. He changes my oil and rotates my tires. Happy anniversary to the love of my life.

Awesome article link

I've been reading with interest the whole "w ea r pan ts to church" thing. My friend read an article and told me about it. Today while reading some comments on a popular blog, a link to the same article was listed. Here it is. It's pretty amazing. Click me! Click me!

Madness

My new favorite song lately is Muse's "Madness". I can't get enough of it. If this link works, you can get your listen on. It is the third song on the list.

Help me waste my time

I need suggestions on websites that waste my time. My routine on the computer is this: facebook, email, obituaries, ksl, my google reader account for the few blogs that I follow, and n i e n i e diaglogues. I don't know why I even check her blog. I basically don't like it anymore. I don't like to read blogs where they write novels. Where they use 7 sentences when 1 would suffice. I don't like funky stylish blogs, deep artsy blogs, look-how-perfect-my life-is blogs, instructional blogs. Does that eliminate all of them? I like funny ones. Do you know any funny ones? I do like pinterest, so I go there occasionally. Help me waste my time.

My girls and me

Corn and pumpkins

Today I took the kids to Harward Farms pumpkin patch. They played in the corn area, which is about a 10'x 15' area of dried corn. Kids get a kick out of it. They have a small maze with hay bale walls. They had some cool animals. There was a man with a reindeer and a great dane. That great dane was beautiful. I think I'm a fan of big dogs. I'm just unwilling to take care of one. Maybe when the kids get older. There was the biggest pig I've ever seen. It was ginormous. I let them pick a pumpkin and we went on a hayride. It was fun and we were there for about an hour. Molly was scared at first and wouldn't go play in the corn, but eventually she did and ended up loving it. They were pretty dirty when we got home and I made them dinner and then they had a bath. About 5 minutes into the bath I start washing Molly and I realize that they were REALLY dirty. I hadn't even noticed that they were that bad. That water was so brown. That water. Man, it was... it was freakishly brown for just going to play in the corn, go on a hay ride, pick a pumpkin. Then I realize. MOLLY! What the? Crap. Literally. All three kids were in there. It was everywhere. I threw away every toy that was in that bathtub. And every rag. And the shampoo. And every spiderman scrubber.

This is Molly's reaction when I first put her in. She was not a happy girl.

My friend's blog

This is a link to my friend Amy's blog. I thought I'd put a link to her blog because her most recent entry is about her son's severe excema. So if you know any babies who suffer from this, they can benefit from reading about her experience.

http://www.utahcountyonline.org/houseimages/199723/044101.jpg http://www.utahcountyonline.org/houseimages/200507/566901.jpg The first link is a picture of our house when (I think) it was first built, in the 1960s. Then the second link is a picture of our house in 2005. For those of you who have been to our house, you know that our front door is a burgundy-ish color. The door in this picture is white. I have been looking up on county records the homes around my street. Some have really old pictures. It is awesome!

Soccer and a school carnival

Dave has night classes on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Matthew also has soccer on both nights. Soccer twice a week? I thought that was overkill, but it has turned out to be great. It gives us something to do on the nights Dave comes home after the kids go to bed. Well, tonight there was a school carnival. At first I didn't think I'd take the kids. All three kids by myself at a carnival? Is the world ending? I kind of thought so. But I cowboyed up and bought tickets for the carnival. So we had a soccer game at 5:15 and the carnival right after. It was fine. There was a spook alley. I thought the girls wouldn't want to go in, but they did. About 10 seconds into it, Norah got scared and refused to go in any further. So I saw a couple random girls in the dark and asked if they would take my son with them. They said they would and I blurted out, "his name is Matthew!" A woman offered to stay with Norah so I could take Matthew in, but Norah would have none of that. So I stayed near the exit with my girls waiting for the two older girls to come out with Matthew. Then a neighbor girl who rides in my car pool said, "I'm done, but Matthew is still in there with Abby." I asked if it was her and her sister that I had Matthew go through with. She said it was. It was my two sweet neighbor girls that ride in my car pool. One has babysat for us before, and their older sister is one of our regular babysitters. We had a get-together at their house last week. The spook alley had been so dark that I didn't recognize the girls. They are awesome. It got thinking how much I love my neighbors. Their mom was my visiting teacher, then we got put as companions. She is my best friend in my ward. I don't know her REALLY well, but I really like her. She has 4 girls. I am so glad that we live here. When we first toured our house, our offer was turned down. I was so disappointed. I cried (I think I've posted that here before). I had imagined our kids growing up in this house. But when we found out that the offer that had been accepted had fallen through and we got another chance at the house, I didn't want to get my hopes up. I told a friend, "If God wants us to live there, we will live there." And now we live there. We live here. That get-together that I mentioned was at my neighbor's house to the west. They and another neighbor had a ton of onions from their garden and they wanted to have a "fry party" They had a bbq and onion rings, scones, etc. We were a little late, and since we're not really social we didn't know how long we'd stay, even though we both really like all our neighbors. But we all ended up being there until 9:30. They put on a movie outside for the kids. Another neighbor brought bug spray. Dave took fussy Molly to bed and came back. I went home and got jackets and blankets for the kids. And 5 or 6 families just hung out and laughed and talked and had a great time.

My son

While making dinner tonight I looked out my kitchen window and saw a beautiful thing. Was it the sunset? The cool horses that border our yard on two sides? The green grass that I love to mow? The beautiful mountains as they are changing colors? None of these. The beautiful sight that struck me to my core was my son. He was playing. Just running around, by himself, smiling, entertaining himself, enjoying the perfect weather of one of the last summer evenings. I can't believe how fast he is growing. I love this boy more than words can describe. I love to watch him learn, explore, smile, laugh, question, study, befriend, embrace, and live. He'll never truly understand how much I love him. I think this is like our Heavenly Father's (and Mother's) love for us.

We're not going to Disneyland

This week my son brought home a brochure thing about Disneyland, Car Land, Lego Land etc. amusement parks in California. That got me thinking that we should do some sort of trip with our kids. But the thought of driving to California with a two year old does not appeal to me. At all. But I mentioned going to Disneyland to my husband and he threw out the idea of going to Lagoon instead. I thought that was a good idea. I love Lagoon. I haven't been there for 10 years. But still I don't want to take a 2 year old there. But my sister owes me babysitting and so yesterday I had an idea. We take the older kids to Lagoon and go to a hotel for a couple nights. So I've booked a hotel from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning. I'm excited! For all I know they will be too scared to ride the rides and it will be a bust, but maybe they will love it. We thought about taking our trailer and camping there, but I didn't want it to be a camping trip. I want it to be kind of relaxing for me, as relaxing as can be with a 6 and a 4 year old.

This is an interesting article about how much cash you should have for varying emergencies. They suggest a lot more than I thought I should have. Uh oh. http://ferfal.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-much-cash-should-i-have.html

Northland College (NZ) principal John Tapene has offered the following words from a judge who regularly deals with youth. “Always we hear the cry from teenagers ‘What can we do, where can we go?’ … My answer is, “Go home, mow the lawn, wash the windows, learn to cook, build a raft, get a job, visit the sick, study your lessons, and after you’ve finished, read a book.” “Your town does not owe you recreational facilities and your parents do not owe you fun. The world does not owe you a living, you owe the world something. You owe it your time, energy and talent so that no one will be at war, in poverty or sick and lonely again.” “In other words, grow up, stop being a cry baby, get out of your dream world and develop a backbone, not a wishbone. Start behaving like a responsible person. You are important and you are needed. It’s too late to sit around and wait for somebody to do something someday. Someday is now and that somebody is you…”“

The Walking Dead

I can't sleep. It's 6:42 a.m. and I have been awake since 5:30. I didn't fall asleep until around 1:00 a.m. so you'd think I would be tired, right? It's a good thing I woke up because I was having a scary dream. I dreamed I had an operation by a husband and wife and later the wife cut off the husband's legs so he couldn't hurt any more people. This dream stems from my watching The Walking Dead with Dave. I love this show. It can be fairly violent, so some people prefer not to see it. I usually wouldn't consider myself a fan of a zombie show, but, as the following states (taken from Wikipedia) "The plot is focused primarily on the dilemmas the group faces as they struggle to balance their humanity with their survival against the zombie horde, and later, how they cope with members being killed and deal with other human survivors they encounter, many of whom are dangerous and predatory themselves." It makes me think of what I'd do in certain situations. Not so much a "post-apocalyptic" zombie world, but a "survive on your own, live with what you have" world. Because I don't believe zombies are real. But I could be wrong. Here is more info on the show. The Walking Dead (TV series) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Walking Dead is an American post-apocalyptic drama television series developed for television by Frank Darabont. It is based on the comic book series The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. The series stars Andrew Lincoln as sheriff's deputy[1] Rick Grimes who wakes up after being in a coma to find the world dominated by "walkers", resembling the zombies of George A. Romero's horror movies. He sets out to find his family and other survivors along the way. The Walking Dead premiered on October 31, 2010 on the cable television channel AMC in the United States.[2] Based on its reception, AMC renewed the series for a second season of 13 episodes which premiered on October 16, 2011.[3][4] Two episodes into the second season, AMC announced that the show would return for a third season.[5] The series has been well received by critics,[6][7] and has received many award nominations, including a Writers Guild of America Award nomination and a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Television Series Drama.[8][9] The series has also attained strong Nielsen ratings, beating various records for a cable series, including receiving 9 million viewers for its season two finale to become the most-watched basic cable drama telecast in history.[10] Based on the comic book series of the same name, The Walking Dead tells the story of a small group of survivors living in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.[11] Most of the story takes place in the Atlanta metropolitan area, and then the surrounding countryside of Northern Georgia, as the survivors search for a safe haven away from the shuffling hordes of predatory "walkers" (as the zombies are referred to in the show) who devour any living thing they catch, and whose bite is infectious to humans. The plot is focused primarily on the dilemmas the group faces as they struggle to balance their humanity with their survival against the zombie horde, and later, how they cope with members being killed and deal with other human survivors they encounter, many of whom are dangerous and predatory themselves. The group is led by Rick Grimes, who was a sheriff's deputy[1] before the zombie outbreak. At every turn they are faced with the horror of the dead walking again, the changing dynamic of their group, and hostility from the scattered remains of a struggling human populace who are focused on their own survival now that the structures of society have collapsed. [edit]Season 1 (2010) Main article: The Walking Dead (season 1) Season one follows sheriff's deputy[1] Rick Grimes as he attempts to find his family and lead them to safety. The series begins with Rick waking up from a coma in an abandoned and badly damaged hospital. Leaving the hospital Rick discovers a post-apocalyptic world overrun with zombies (or "walkers", as they are referred to in-show). Rick also discovers his wife and son are missing. Acting on a rumor from a fellow survivor, he arms himself and begins a perilous journey to Atlanta, Georgia, where the CDC is said to have set up a quarantined "safe-zone" in the city, reasoning that his family may be there. During his journey, Rick sees the devastation to both society and infrastructure left by the disaster. Upon reaching Atlanta, he soon discovers that the city is overrun by the undead and is no longer a safe zone. A few miles outside the city, Rick's wife Lori and son Carl have been hiding from the walkers with Shane Walsh, Rick's former colleague and best friend. They have established a camp with a small group of survivors. After being rescued from Atlanta by members of the group and reunited with Lori and Carl, Rick assumes command of the group with Shane. Part of the group goes back into Atlanta to recover weapons, where they come into conflict with other survivors, but Rick soon eases the tensions. On their return to their camp, they find it has been nearly overrun by walkers. Hoping to find medical treatment for an injured member, the remainder of the group decide to return to Atlanta and seek aid from the CDC. In the CDC "safezone", all but one staff member, Dr. Edwin Jenner, have either fled or killed themselves. Dr. Jenner explains that his research into the cause of the infection has not yielded a cure. The CDC building is not the safe haven the group believed it would be. The following day, lack of fuel for the generators causes the safety protocols to be initiated. An explosion, meant to prevent the escape of deadly diseases, will destroy the CDC. Dr. Jenner explains that the French may have found a cure, as they survived the longest in their labs. Dr. Jenner and Jacqui, a member of Rick's group, decide to stay in the CDC and end their struggle. Another member of the group, Andrea, attempts to stay as well due to her despair after her sister Amy's death. Dale stays with her and says that if she does not leave, he will not. To prevent his death, Andrea makes a last minute decision to leave, thus saving them both. Before the group flees, Dr. Jenner whispers something into Rick's ear. The group escapes just as Jenner and Jacqui are killed by the explosion. [edit]Season 2 (2011–2012) Main article: The Walking Dead (season 2) The second season begins with Rick and his group of survivors escaping the CDC. They decide that Fort Benning would be their next destination. Along the way, they come across a traffic jam of abandoned vehicles on Interstate 85. The group loots several vehicles and, as a large herd of walkers approaches, are forced to hide under the vehicles. While in hiding Sophia is chased out from under the vehicle and is then pursued into the woods. The remaining group deals with interpersonal relationships while various searches for Sophia are performed. Carl is accidentally shot during the initial search by a hunter, Otis. Otis leads Rick and Shane to a large, isolated farm owned by a veterinarian named Hershel Greene. The survivors move to the farm while Carl recovers. Rick's group tries to co-exist alongside Hershel's family, but dangerous secrets and disagreements over leadership cause tensions to rise. Glenn builds a romantic relationship with Maggie, one of Hershel's daughters. He also discovers that Hershel's barn is full of walkers, some of which are Hershel´s family members. When Shane forces the walkers out of the barn and the group opens fire, Sophia appears as a walker and is shot by Rick. Hershel, who had to that point thought walkers were living people who could be treated, reacts badly to what has happened. He orders Rick and his group to leave immediately, before disappearing to grieve for his family. Daryl begins to withdraw from the group. Rick and Glenn go searching for Hershel. He was once an alcoholic, and they discover him drinking heavily in a local tavern. After trying to persuade Hershel to return, two other men enter the bar: survivors from another group. The situation rapidly turns sour and Rick kills the two men in gunfight. The dead men's former group quickly finds and opens fire on Rick, Hershel, and Glenn at the bar. The noise of the firefight attracts a large herd of walkers, and in their desperation to get away, the other group of survivors leave one of their members, Randall, behind, who got impaled in the leg by a steel fence after attempting to jump off a roof and flee. Rick cannot stand the thought of leaving him to be killed by walkers, so the three free him from the fence, then blindfold him, and take him to the farm. However, once they get him there, they realize that he could lead the remainder of his former group to the farm. Rick decides to drive Randall into the countryside to abandon him but is attacked by walkers during a fist fight with Shane. Shortly before the walkers' arrival, Randall confessed that he had known who Maggie and Hershel were, leading Rick and Shane to believe Randall may know the location of Hershel's farm. With the secrecy of the farm's location compromised, Rick decides to bring Randall back for possible execution. Hershel's daughter, Beth, tries to kill herself in order to escape a seemingly hopeless situation. The group deliberates over the fate of Randall and, despite Dale's protests, decides to execute him. Carl begins experimenting in danger, and is found watching Rick as he prepares to execute Randall. After seeing Carl, Rick sends Shane to take Carl away and decides to not execute Randall. Dale is fatally wounded by a walker, and as a result is killed by Daryl as an act of mercy. After Dale's funeral, the group decides that they need to rediscover their humanity. The group conducts a search for Randall, whom Shane secretly released and killed nearby by breaking his neck. Daryl and Glenn run into a walker then kill it. They realize that it was Randall. Daryl points out that Randall had no bites or scratches, only a broken neck. Daryl concludes that the breaking of the neck was the cause of death. Daryl and Glenn come to the realization that the dead can come back without being bitten by walkers. Shane uses the search for Randall as a ploy to silence Rick, but Rick realizes this and stabs Shane; as he does Shane fires his gun, missing Rick. Just minutes later, Shane reanimates as a walker and Carl shoots him. The shots have attracted a large herd of walkers; Rick and Carl take refuge in the barn. Rick instructs Carl to ignite the barn after drawing walkers inside in order to save both himself and Carl. In the ensuing battle, Jimmy and Patricia are killed, Andrea is left behind, and the RV is lost. Andrea survives on her own, and is later rescued by a hooded woman accompanied by chained, armless walkers. The survivors, consisting of Rick, Lori, Carl, Glenn, Daryl, Carol, T-Dog, Maggie, Beth, and Hershel, regroup on the highway, but are forced to make camp due to lack of gasoline. The group begins to question Rick's leadership, to which he responds: "I didn't ask for this. I killed my best friend for you people." Frustrated, he declares that "this isn't a democracy any more", after revealing what Dr. Jenner told him—all of the survivors are infected. A large prison looms in a pan out of the final scene. [edit]Season 3 (2012–2013) Main article: The Walking Dead (season 3) AMC renewed The Walking Dead for a third season on October 25, 2011 after the season two premiere broke cable ratings records in the 18–49 demographic.[5] On January 14, 2012, AMC announced that the third season will contain an extended episode order of 16 episodes.[12] On February 24, 2012, it was announced that David Morrissey had been cast as The Governor,[13] and on March 18, 2012, during Talking Dead, it was revealed that Danai Gurira had been cast as Michonne.[14] Michael Rooker has also confirmed that his character, Merle Dixon, will be returning in season 3.[15] On July 13, 2012, it was announced at San Diego Comic-Con International that the season will premiere on October 14, 2012.[16] On August 10, 2012, Robert Kirkman confirmed that season 3 will be split into two halves with the first 8 episodes set to premiere on October 14, 2012, and the other 8 episodes to air in early spring 2013.[17] [edit]Cast and characters Main article: List of The Walking Dead (TV series) characters [edit]Main Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes Sarah Wayne Callies as Lori Grimes Laurie Holden as Andrea Steven Yeun as Glenn Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon (recurring Season 1; regular Seasons 2–) Jon Bernthal as Shane Walsh (Seasons 1–2) Jeffrey DeMunn as Dale Horvath (Seasons 1–2) [edit]Recurring Melissa McBride as Carol Peletier IronE Singleton as Theodore "T-Dog" Douglas Lauren Cohan as Maggie Greene (Seasons 2–) Scott Wilson as Hershel Greene (Seasons 2–) Emily Kinney as Beth Greene (Seasons 2–) Jane McNeill as Patricia (Season 2) James McCune as Jimmy (Season 2) Madison Lintz as Sophia Peletier (Seasons 1–2) Emma Bell as Amy (Season 1) Jeryl Prescott as Jacqui (Season 1) Michael Zegen as Randall (Season 2) Adam Minarovich as Ed Peletier (Seasons 1–2) Andrew Rothenberg as Jim (Season 1) Juan Gabriel Pareja as Morales (Season 1) Michael Rooker as Merle Dixon

What happened to me today?

So yesterday was kind of tough for me. What happened? Well, I went to Wally world with the kids. I know, right? I always take all the kids and it hasn't been an issue until the last month or so. I mean, it was tough, but manageable. But the youngest Throckmorton offspring has proven to be the most difficult. She wants and thinks she can do all the things that the older two can. She fusses the second I take her out of the car, and she is especially bad at check out. Dave had gone motorcycling with a friend and upon his return I told him that he'd be in charge of the kids for the rest of the day. I'd be home (maybe) but he'd be responsible for them, as if I wasn't there. I needed to rest, clean, etc. in peace. Speaking of resting in peace, let me tell you about how I almost had to rest in peace today. I dropped off the middle Throckmorton offspring at preschool. Some of you may be familiar with Highway 6 in Spanish Fork. I had to cross that busy road to get back to my house. I consider myself a good driver, a fairly defensive driver. The accident we had last year was not my fault, btw. So I was the first in line to cross that road and we got a green light, and the left turn lane got a green arrow. So the car turns left and I hesitated for maybe a second, then I proceed forward. I was in the middle of the intersection when from my right (going south on Highway 6)a huge semi truck COMPLETELY runs the red light. I didn't have to SLAM on my breaks since I wasn't going very fast, but we would have been crushed, obliterated had that truck hit us. I don't know why he didn't stop. I can understand if he ran the red light because roads were icy, but the road was completely clear. He was going very fast. I didn't feel inspiration to hesitate that one second, but had I kept going, Dave would have one less wife and one less child. I always ask Heavenly Father to bless us to be safe, and today it was obvious that He did. It is a good reminder that life is precious. Life is short, and you never know what is in store for us. So I'm here (and my sweet Molly is, too) to live another day, and for that I am very grateful. Also, I vacuumed out my car in my driveway that leads to the backyard and I had the gate closed. I was in all sorts of weird positions and my butt was way up in the air and the neck of my shirt was hanging way low. I remember thinking, I hope no one comes by. But I thought I was safe. But I wasn't. Some workers are doing utility work in front of my house and they wanted to know if they could put a pile of small rocks in front of our house. I saw the man through the window and I stood up quickly to look as presentable as I could. I was so embarrassed. He was nice though. He joked that I could clean his car when I was done and I said I would love to if he'd let me drive his back hoe (or track how). He said he'd be happy to let me drive it. And that is what happened to me today. But the day isn't over, so we'll see what else God has in store for me.

Discipline ideas

This site has amazing discipline ideas.

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.” ~Charles R. Swindoll

Art from Wally World

We have a mantle in our downstairs made of a big log cut lengthwise. I love it. Right now I just have random stuff on it. I've been wanting to put a big picture on it and have looked off and on. Our walls and couch are brown and that is very soothing to me. I've decided I need some color in there. So I decided to get a picture with color and then I'll do matching pillows. I don't have curtains, and I kind of like that, but maybe someday. Just for more color. We don't spend much time at all in that room. But you see it as you walk in my house. And it's usually clean and that calms me down. I found a couple pictures that I like. And of course they are from Walmart. Here are the two options (so far). I'm curious which one you like the best. And if you don't like either one, it's good you don't live in my house I guess. 1. Japanese 1 2. The Red Way

hello kitty socks

My son has a friend from kindergarten. It's a girl and he likes her a lot. He asks all the time if she can come over and play. We ran into her last week at the Mapleton 24th of July celebration and the next day I got an email from her mom. She was having a birthday party and wanted to invite Matthew. Of all the birthdays that Matthew has ever gone to he hasn't said anything about what to give them for a present. I always just pick them out. A couple years ago I decided to give books instead of toys. They'll last longer and the parents will appreciate them more (I think). So the day before the party Matthew said, "we should talk about what to get Nicole for her birthday." I asked what he wanted to get her and he said, "a shirt!". He said, "mom, you know the sippy cup we have with a cat on it? I want to get her a shirt with that cat on it. Nicole loves that cat. Her backpack has that cat on it." It is a hello kitty backpack. He has talked before about how much she likes hello kitty. So we go to the store and we found some cute socks with hello kitty on them. We got her a pack of small socks and a pack of long socks, all hello kitty. After the party I asked if Nicole liked the socks and he said that, yes, she liked them a lot. Then he added, "She didn't just LIKE the socks, she LOVED them! She said they will probably go with her dress." It was adorable.

I hate shopping

I hate shopping and I always have. I probably always will. You have no idea how much money I've saved my husband by my lack of desire to go shopping. He does FAR more shopping than I do. But his isn't for clothes. So basically I buy all my clothes at Walmart during the 3 minutes when my kids are behaving, and that is not a good idea.

Me being sappy

A couple weeks ago we were on time to church. Not just on time, but EARLY. About five minutes early. So early we could have chosen a bench. But we went to the back for the metal folding chairs. Being on time is quite an accomplishment for us considering we have 9:00 church. In relation to my last post about important documents, I find it interesting that yesterday in church our bishop mentioned having important documents ready to go in case of evacuation. So, huzzah! I am on the right track in one area of my life at least.

This picture is what happened to Norah when she and Molly ran into each other. It looks worse than it really was.

Oh, the randomness of my thoughts. Recently a friend ended her blog post with the question, "what makes YOU so happy?" This was my comment on her blog: What makes me so happy? Bed time (ours and the kids'), vanilla greek yogurt with grapes, memories of Hungary, sunsets, talking with friends, music, an empty sink, clean floors, made beds, a full tank of gas, kindness of strangers, being kind to strangers, falling asleep with Dave by my side, waking up with him by my side, family, naps, food, and of course the gospel.

I didn't specifically say my kids (but I did say their bedtime!) But they are my life. My husband and my kids. Do you sometimes look at your spouse and children and it is almost as if the heavens open and your spiritual eyes are widened and you see them in a whole new light, almost as if for the first time? That happens to me sometimes. It's like time stands still and your only purpose at that moment is to truly see them as they are meant to be seen. Not as a liability that needs three + meals a day, baths, clean clothes, snacks, lessons, etc. But for who they really are and for who they will become. For who God intends them to be, and for right now, they are just as they should be. And you are in awe that God has blessed you to be a part in their amazing lives. That you are lucky enough to be bound eternally with such a wonderful husband, and some pretty darn amazing munchkins.

Dear Dave: Grow old along with me The best is yet to be When our time has come We will be as one God bless our love God bless our love Grow old along with me Two branches of one tree Face the setting sun When the day is done God bless our love God bless our love Spending our lives together Man and wife together World without end World without end Grow old along with me Whatever fate decrees We will see it through For our love is true God bless our love God bless our love Lyrics by Mary Chapin Carpenter

With all the fires and evacuations in Utah lately I realize I may have 72 hour kits ready (or fairly ready), but I don't have important documents ready. This link is a great example of something I want to do.

$1,000

I have a friend whose brother told his wife if she gets down to the weight she wants to be at he'd give her $1,000. He prefers her being that weight and she does too. The motivation from her husband helps her, and so does that $1,000 reward. I thought about this and since Dave doesn't want me to lose weight I told him that HE could get $1,000 if I get to my goal weight. My goal is to not eat after dinner. I don't know why I struggle so much. I used to think that I am heavy because food just tastes good. Food tastes freaking good, especially the food that I prefer. But I haven't always been heavy. I was a normal weight up until I had kids. Even after Matthew was born I was still in a normal weight range for me. But the more kids I have the more stress I have. And I eat. It's a good thing I'm done having kids. Right? Yes, it sure is. In many ways it sure is. I told Dave he has to help me. I've asked for his help before (when I want brownies, don't let me eat them. Don't make them for me, etc.) So this morning I pleaded for him to help me. I don't have much willpower. However, I AM glad that he is not the type of husband to harp about my weight. If he wanted me thin it would be so much easier. Maybe I should just pretend he wants me to be thin. It's not so much the weight as it is a healthy body. But along with the added weight comes added health risks. And as I lose weight, I gain health benefits. The losing of the weight will be an added bonus. But people who are thin are not necessarily healthy. I think it's called "the thin fat". I have all the resolve in the morning, but as the day goes on I get stressed and I eat.

Mapleton

Facts about Mapleton, as found on its official website. Mapleton City is nestled against the majestic foothills of Sierra Bonita Mountain in the Wasatch Range. A unique community having the advantage of 60 percent of the land being undeveloped within the corporate boundaries of the City. The rural atmosphere combined with the friendliness of its citizens has and continues to attract new residents to the area. The current population is approximately 7,001 (July, 2006 Census estimate) with the State projecting a population of 20,000 in the Year 2020. To avoid jeopardizing the open space ambiance and spectacular views in every direction, the City has been and will be pro-active in its planning scope to accommodate diversified residential, commercial, and recreational interests. Our focus is to our citizens. They in turn have dedicated an enormous amount of time to community service and are commended for such. We welcome you to our website and hope you find the information that we have provided to be of value. Mapleton – General Facts and Information: Mapleton is located approximately eight miles south of Provo, and fifty miles south of Salt Lake City. Its residents enjoy the small town feel and its beautiful setting next to the mountains. The current population is approximately 7,001 according to the latest U.S. Census figures. The 2000 census showed Mapleton to have a population of 5,809 people and Utah County showed a population of 368,536. The State of Utah is projecting Mapleton's population to be 20,000 in the year 2020. Mapleton faces challenges similar to other towns along the Wasatch Front caused by a rapidly growing regional population. Mapleton's population has been growing by about 6-8% every year since 1990. Mapleton has an average of 3.8 persons per household and approximately 1,900 homes. Mapleton's elevation is 4724 feet. It has a land area of about 12 square miles. Mapleton is located in Utah County (named after Utah Lake and the Valley it sits in), which has a population of 368,536 according to the 2000 Census. Adjacent Cities: Springville 24,424 - Spanish Fork 24,246 – Provo 111,718 (8 miles). Elementary Schools: Mapleton Elementary, Hobble Creek Elementary Jr. High Schools: Mapleton Jr. High School High Schools: Springville High School, Maple Mountain High School (2009) Colleges/Universities: Utah Valley State College (Orem) - Brigham Young University (Private) (Provo) Hospitals: Utah Valley Regional Medical Center - Provo (10 miles North) - Timpanogos Hospital - Orem (15 miles North) - Mountain View Hospital - Payson (10 miles South) Mapleton’s largest employer is Nebo School District with 90+ employees. 80% of residents attended some college. 45% graduated from college. 89% of adults are married. 67% of adults have children living at home. 93% of the homes are being bought. 7% are being rented. 59% of the homes are on one acre lots or larger.

funeral

My cousin's son's funeral was yesterday. It was so beautiful. It was very sad in the beginning. His coffin was so little. His favorite color is orange, so they had a white coffin with orange around the middle edges. My cousin did a great job. At one point near the end of the visitation she just leaned on the coffin and cried and cried. I can't imagine losing a child, especially in a house fire. What a tragic way to go. I think he passed away of smoke inhalation, he wasn't burned (I think). They hadn't looked at the body, but right before we left the visitation room and went into the chapel (it was a closed casket) the family asked to see little Austin and they went over and looked in. There were so many tears and it was heartbreaking to know that this was the last time my cousin would see her little boy in this life. But you know, after she looked at him and they closed the casket, she looked so peaceful. She looked stronger. I told her this and she said she DID feel peaceful. I was so proud of her. At the graveside they had two huge orange balloon bouquets. People took a balloon and they all released the balloons at once. I'm grateful to know that death is not the end. I'm grateful to have knowledge of the resurrection and eternal families. I'm grateful that my 22-month-old daughter cried in the middle of the night and I held her for two hours as we both slept on the rocking chair in her room. I'm grateful to have a husband whom I adore and three wonderful children that drive me crazy at times. I'm grateful for an overweight oddly shaped body to live my life in. The fat part I can do something about, the oddly shaped part is here to stay. I'm grateful that our sprinklers in our front yard magically started to work better last night. I'm grateful to be in the nursery with Dave. We were in the nursery together before we had kids, and it is fun to be in there together after we've had kids (Dave may disagree, but I think he'd rather be in nursery that EQ). I'm grateful that we have sufficient for our needs. I'm grateful to live in such a wonderful country. I'm grateful to live in Mapleton. I love it here. I fall in love with it again every time I drive around. I'm grateful for the love my kids show me every day even though I'm not deserving. I love that they are so forgiving. I'm grateful for friends. Those who live close, those who live far, those who I see often, and those I see not so often. New friends, old friends, and potential friends. I'm grateful to be me. I need a lot of fixing, but I'm working on it (sometimes).

I don't know if you saw in the news yesterday about a fire in Spanish Fork that took the life of a 2-year-old boy. His mother is my cousin. It is such a devastating thing, losing a child. Something that I can't imagine enduring and hope I never have to. He was the cutest little boy. He had curly reddish brown hair and a round face with big beautiful brown eyes. My heart aches for my poor cousin.

Tent trailer

Today I bought a tent trailer. We've been looking for about a week. At first we weighed the pros and cons of a bumper pull and a tent trailer. We opted for a regular bumper pull. We looked at three of them and liked them. Then yesterday Dave bought some rocks for our front yard. It was really heavy and Dave said it was slow. His truck is a 1986 Chevy and it's not the strongest truck. So as I looked for tent trailers the closest one was in Lehi and the other trailers were in West Valley, South Jordan, Sandy. So a bit far to just check out a trailer. I was doing a search for $2,000-$3,000. Then this morning I did a lower minimum amount. I changed it to 1500 and up popped a tent trailer for 1,995 in Mapleton. It was about 10:30 and I called and went over 10 minutes later. It was only listed this morning. I guess last week it WAS listed and the guy had one person look at it and a bunch of calls. Then he went out of town and just relisted it this morning. Anyway, I really like the tent trailer. It is fairly spacious inside. It takes about 10-15 minutes to set up. The man showed me how to put it up and take it down. Dave is out of town, so he'll pick it up on Monday night after work and I'll have the guy show him how to set it up and down. The ad has been marked as sold, but this trailer looks very similar to the one I bought. The stove can be taken out so you can cook outside of your tent. All the sides zip down so you can have the wind blow through the trailer if you want it to. There is an awning, and I'm excited about that. I'm glad that we can pull it with my minivan. We had a couple trailers in the past for short, short amounts of time (less than a week), and I always worried about when it would rain. This will be easy to pull a tarp over it to put my mind at ease. It will be easier to store and maneuver. We decided we can get a bumper pull trailer as our kids get bigger and when we get a bigger truck. But this should last us a long, long time. I hope Dave likes it since I bought it without him seeing it. But I'm pretty sure it is what he had in mind.

On being tall

I'm fairly tall. I'm six feet tall. Well, almost 6. I'm about 1/2 inch shy of being 6 feet tall. When I was single if I met a tall guy I'd say I was 6 feet, if he was shorter I'd say 5' 11". I was always on the back row of my class pictures at school. I am pretty sure every single year, but I'd have to check first. I like being tall. It's harder for me to get in small spaces than more petite girls, but I'm used to it. I don't really have to go in small places a lot. But I do have to reach high a lot, so that comes in handy. I used to be petite. When I was 10. Does petite mean shorter or small frame? Sometimes I wonder when I see "petite" pants that seem bigger (not longer) than mine. If petite means short, well then, I've never been petite. Then I got older, then I had babies, then I got stressed, then I ate junk to deal with my stress. Now I'm not petite, but I'm still tall! I saw a very tall woman at WalMart last week. I felt short compared to her. She was at least 6'4". It was awesome. I wrote this because I was browsing online at shoes and I saw some big wedge heel shoes. Totally cute. I am not getting them though. Not because I'm so freakishly tall already, but because I am afraid of my ability to walk in them. I think I'd fall flat on my face. I remember just after high school going on a trip to California with a friend and a couple married friends of hers. One of the friends asked my pants size. I always wore mens sizes back then and I told her my size. She kind of gasped and said, "My HUSBAND wears that size!" She was kind of freaked out. I didn't care because she was heavy. I wanted to say, "yes, and you are fat. I'm not sure what your point is." But I didn't say that. I was thin at the time, at least 50 pounds lighter than I am now. So I just bought a bunch of clothes online. I decided I need to buy more clothes. I can never find pants long enough. Have you ever seen cute pants and you ask the lady where she got them? I did that today in the parking lot of my husband's work. They were super cute pants. Also, I have a lot of ear wax in my ears. So much that I couldn't hear well from my right ear. I went to the doctor today and they pulled some out and flushed some out. It was incredibly painful. Probably the worst pain I've ever felt. I must be totally wimpy, but it was horrible. Worse than my post c-section pain, worse than my other post-surgery pains. I've felt contractions, and I hated them. But I'd rather have contractions than have wax yanked out of my ear.

I've been wanting a record player for a while now. I don't really know why. I loved hearing it play at my Grandma Bench's house. I loved the crackle in the background of the music. I just learned that that crackle means the record is scratched and it is an undesirable sound. But I like it. Anyway, I bought a record player! And I'm so excited. I was at a yard sale with a friend and I almost said to my friend, "if you see a record player, let me know." And about 3 minutes later I see this thing and I snatched it up. She and I have the same van (different years and colors) and love the stow-n-go. So we stowed and go-ed that thing right over to my house.

The radio works, too. It's time for me to start collecting records! I don't know if this is where it will stay, but for now, this is the place. It's in pretty good condition, according to my husband and FIL.

Trotting

I need to get on the treadmill. I've been doing good using it lately. I usually use it every weekday. And I usually do it for at least 45 minutes. Not fast, mind you, but I'm on it. And the machine is ON. I've never been a runner, not even a jogger. I used the word "trot" the other day and Dave told me that he is pretty sure the only living creature that trots is a horse. Back in January I jogged/trotted for 10 minutes straight, which is huge for me. Huge. I've never had endurance for running, even doing the fun run in junior high. And I was skinny then. When I'm on the treadmill I like to watch the biggest loser on Netflix. It's very motivating to me. Plus I feel thinner when I watch all the obese people. Then the end of the season arrives and I'm back to being the fat pig because all the contestants have lost 50% of their body weight. But I'm not obese, I'm just overweight. Although I've been alarmingly close to the obese side. And I'll be at the high end of a normal weight for my height when/if I lose 25 pounds. Dave said he'd get me granite countertops if I GAIN 25 pounds. A friend called me lucky for having a husband who likes me heavier, and I guess I am. He likes the curves, even if they are on my belly. TMI, I know. I'll tell you it's a lot cuter seeing a chubby toddler in a swim suit than a skinny one. But I don't think the same goes for grown women. But Dave would rather lay down by a "soft pillow" rather than a bunch of "sticks". Those aren't his terms, but close enough. And the other day while watching the biggest loser I started to trot and I trotted for a whole 20 minutes. Nay..nay!

Hey moms, here are some very cool kid ideas to use during the summer. A fb friend posted them on pinterest. Check them out!

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/25616_10150165556860332_514010331_11768910_1668700_n.jpg

Tractors, t-ball and Mother's Day...What do they have in common?

This post is going to be very scatter brained, but I promise I have a point to make. About four years ago I saw Dave looking at tractors on-line. I may have mentioned this part of my post before. I thought it was so odd and I DID NOT want him to buy a tractor. Why, why, why did he need a tractor? I had no idea. Later my heart was softened and I realized (actually, I seriously think it was the Spirit directing me) that "I married a man who wants a tractor". Let him get the tractor. And he got a tractor. And I was happy for him. I like that he likes tractors. I signed up my son for t-ball and his first game was scheduled for May 12th, last Saturday. About a week and a half ago my husband called home from work and asked if we had plans for Saturday, May 12th. I said, "it's Matthew's t-ball game" and before that there is a little league season opening "parade". All the teams ride in the back of a truck or trailer in their uniforms and drive down the streets. People line the streets and cheer when their team drives by. It's the cutest thing. The parade drives down a street right by our house. Last year I saw all these people going over there and I walked over to see what it was. I absolutely loved it. I love the small town feel of Mapleton and the fun things they do. So I've been excited for a year to have Matthew be in that parade and play t-ball. So when Dave called from work he wanted to go to his trials motorcycle competition which was the same day as the opening game and parade. I told him that he couldn't go. He needed to support his son. I knew he was bothered by it. Later when he got home from work I explained in more detail why I wanted him to go to Matt's game. I told him he married a girl that wants her son to play t-ball and I needed him to support us in that. Honestly, I don't think Matthew would have noticed. I wasn't really snotty about it, but I did kind of put my foot down, which I rarely do. The next day I felt kind of bad that I had "shot down" my husband's desire to participate in the competition. The competition happens every month (I think) in various locations. So I told Dave he could go. I told him I knew it was important to him and he had my blessing. I wasn't testing him to see if he would choose to do what I wanted him to do. So he was going to go to the competition. Saturday morning arrives and I told him that he better get out of bed and go. I asked where the competition was and I googled it. It was at least a two hour drive, which I didn't realize. He said he might not go. I got so excited! I asked why. He said because it is kind of far and his friend that usually goes with him wasn't going. I knew he wasn't staying home to please me, but I was still thrilled that he'd be able to see the parade and go to the game. Then later in the day I was cleaning and he was on the computer. He left saying he was going to go to Spanish Fork and buy a motorcycle. He came back about 20 minutes later and I said, "did you get the motorcycle?" He said no and I felt bad for him. I looked out in his trailer, and there was no motorcycle. But there WAS something there. It was a freezer! He bought me an upright stand alone freezer. I've wanted one since we moved in. It was my Mother's Day present. After my grandmother died we inherited her big freezer and it died about a year later. I'm so excited to fill it up. He got it used off ksl. It is about a year and a half old, but looks brand new. So, that is my story. We went to both our mothers' homes on Sunday and it was fun. When I signed the card for Dave's mom I wondered what I'd like to hear from a future daughter-in-law. And it was this: "I love your son more than you'll ever know and I realize every day how blessed I am. Thanks for raising such a great man." So I wrote something like that to her. I made Dave change all the diapers on Mother's Day. It's more fun to mother on Mother's Day, don't you think? I love being a mom to my children. I'm thankful Heavenly Father has entrusted these children to my care. It's a daunting and sometimes overwhelming responsibility, and often I don't feel like I'm up to the challenge, but I'm doing my best.

A friend posted this video on her blog. It's a cover of this song. It's an amazing song and both versions are so great. Here are some more great versions of it. Funny one Funny, but long, so you might have to skip to the end And I love the voices here on Glee A few days ago my son was singing, "now you're just somebody that I used to know" and I was wondering where do I know that song? It's a great song.

Bomb scare

Have you ever been threatened with a bomb threat? I have. Do you remember this bomb scare at a BYU devotional? I was there with my brother. We went at the last minute and were late, so we sat behind the podium on the benches. We were only about 5 rows up and so we were so close to where it all happened. I remember a guy in a white suit (I think) coming up through a crowd of people fairly quickly. I thought he was going to the restroom or something. Then he went right up to the podium and stood right next to the speaker, which was Howard W. Hunter. There was a lot of confusion. He said there was a bomb and that he had the detonator. There was no reason for us NOT to believe him. I remember holding hands with my brother. The man had a letter that was on the podium and he wanted President Hunter (not president of the church at the time) to read it, of course he refused to read it. I remember people just flooding out of the Marriott Center and a lot of women screaming. I told my brother we should go and he said no. I remember him telling me that he wanted to get the letter, or maybe he just wanted to know what it said. Then a bunch of people came down and piled on the bad guy. Then everyone started singing "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet," and I felt like a fool because I only knew the first verse. I still only know the first verse. Isn't that funny? That was a day I thought I might die, or at least a guy threatened to blow a bunch of us up. I remembered this just now because I saw an article about them getting rid of the benches at the Marriott Center.

The new facebook layout makes it easy to see posts and status updates from previous years. It is kind of fun to see what I've written. A couple years ago I wrote something like this: (I post it here because it made me laugh when I reread it.) When Dave walked by the bathroom he heard Matthew yell out, "I won!" When Dave asked him why he said that Matthew replied, "sometimes when I flush the potty I pretend it is a race." I signed Matthew up for t-ball. He had his first practice last week. Mapleton has a "parade" on opening day of baseball. All the teams get in the bed of a truck or on a trailer that is decorated with their team name on it and all the players are in their uniforms and they drive a few blocks to the baseball fields. I love that Mapleton does that. I saw the parade last year. It went right by my house and Matty and I went and watched a few minutes of it. It was the cutest thing. I was hoping that the games would be at the fields across from my house, but only two of them are. The practices are there, though, so that's nice. All the other kids on his team are so young. They seem so little. In fact, I asked the coach's wife if I had him in the right group. The ages are 4-6. I wonder if I should have put him in the first grade group. But that didn't occur to me since he's not in the first grade. I guess since we don't watch baseball and it's new to him that it is better that he is in the younger group. And I have good news. Dave was accepted into UVU's MBA program. For the last two semesters he's been taking prerequisits for the program and he applied at the end of March. It was no big deal if he didn't get in, as we had not planned on him doing this. Circumstances just happened to be that it would be beneficial and doable to have him get an MBA and we just decided to do it. It won't necessarily benefit him financially at work, but more education is always a good thing. And I figured while my youngest is still taking naps and I'm home bound a lot still, now is a great time to get it over with. I'm proud of him and how hard he works for his classes. A couple weeks ago we did the earthquake drill. I practiced with my girls in a few different rooms. I actually emailed Matthew's teacher to see if they were participating in the Great Utah Shake Out drill. He didn't know but he wanted me to email him the website for it, which I did. They did do a drill that day, which I know schools do earthquake drills. I remember doing them as a student. I think I scared Norah a bit during one of our drills. I turned on the computer that had the earthquake sound during the drill I did in the office. She wanted me to turn the sound off. I wondered if during a drill I should stay where I am or get to the closest child to make sure they are safe, and Dave said odds are I won't be able to walk during an earthquake. I'd be too off balance and I think he's right. Duck, cover, and hold on. I think those are the three steps during an earthquake. I look around in each room and figure out the best place to be. In our office I grabbed Norah and Molly and huddled over them under our computer desk. But I wonder if I should have run and huddled in the doorway of the office. And we huddled on the couch in our living room, under the counter in our kitchen. I told the kids that at random times I'm going to yell out "earthquake!" and they have to respond appropriately. It's fun. I've been thinking about modesty lately. On facebook there have been a lot of pictures of girls in their prom dresses. I'm kind of surprised by some of the dresses that they wear. Most that I see are sleeveless. I worked with a girl right after my mission who was going to go on a mission and she said she had to buy a whole new wardrobe because her clothes were not wearable with garments. I wonder what she will teach her girls. Will she teach her to dress so you don't have to change your wardrobe after you go through the temple, or will she teach them to wear tank tops and short skirts and shorts while they can? Does she regret wearing such short skirts? As the mother of a son I'm going to teach him not to objectify women, and at the same time I'm going to teach my girls not to dress immodestly so men won't look at them like objects. I hope that makes sense. I see some girls in short short shorts and I wonder how their mothers let them leave the house. I said that to my mom and her response was basically don't blame the parent and don't give them all the credit. Meaning (I guess), sometimes kids do what they wand regardless of what their parents teach them. I am glad I don't have to face these things yet. Ramblings. My mind wanders. I've been listening a LOT to my Lionel Ritchie "The Difinitive Collection" cd. I especially love this song. And here is a pretty version of it on glee. And it's funny. Even if you haven't seen glee. I think the girl has a crush on her teacher at this point in time in the show. I'm kind of a sucker for love songs. I don't seem the type, do I? But I am.

This video is awesome. It's called "If I wanted America to fail." It's about who controls the energy, and environmental extremism.

Link for the great utah shake out earthquake drill

Here is a link that has some audio and video of what to do during an earthquake. I listened to the audio just now and it is just basic stuff: duck, cover, hold on. There is the sound of an earthquake in the background. Tomorrow morning at 10:15 is the Great Utah Shakeout--a statewide earthquake drill for those who choose to participate. It's just basically everyone doing a drill at the same time. It also said to look around your room to see what might fall during an earthquake and to stabilize them now, i.e. bookcases. I am so terrible at doing that. They also have radio stations and tv channels that will broadcast the earthquake drill sounds and instructions. One question I have is that should I duck and cover, or run to the kid/kids and duck and cover with them? The audio is only a minute.

Tony Robbins youtube video about federal budget

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jboTeS9Okak&sns=em


The above 20 minute video breaks down the national debt into understandable terms. Millions, billions, trillions? From the video: A million seconds ago... how long ago was that? 12 days. How about a billion? 32 years. And a trillion? I think the video says it was almost 32,000 years ago. And we have 15 trillion in debt. It also says if you earned a million dollars a day, starting at the birth of Christ, you would need perhaps 1,000 more years from this year to reach a trillion.

Tax the rich?! Tax the rich?! A friend of mine on facebook posted something that was about how much time it would take someone to earn the amount of money that Mitt Romney has and a friend of hers commented that she wishes people who were more representative of us should be our representatives. For president? Really? The average household income in this country is about $44,000. You want someone who makes 44K to run our country? I sure don't. I WANT someone who is rich and has a LOT of higher education degrees running the country. Seriously. Besides, to people who complain about rich people: do you have a cell phone? a home phone? a place to live? a few changes of clothes? do you have a cd player, a dvd player? an ipad? an i-anything (I don't, btw--which I think is funny)? do you have a car to drive, maybe even a bike to ride? do you have a book to read? Do you have a toilet to use? Do you have shoes to wear? do you have a stove to cook on? do you have a chair to sit on? do you have running water? Our version of poor in this country is seriously skewed. I'm sick of people whining about what they don't have, in comparison with "the rich". You know what? I AM THE RICH. The person complaining is the rich. If you have a computer to complain about how rich the rich are, YOU ARE THE RICH. Stop complaining and be grateful.

This article is a reason why I can't spend much time on blogs or pinterest. I have a few blogs that I follow, but I read them fast and am done. I can't read crafting blogs because that would just mean more things on my to do list, more things that I'll never get around to doing and that would stress me out. As it is I spend too much time on facebook, and it's not even a ton of time. I don't do twitter. As moms we tend to compare ourselves, or at least I do. I'm not doing this like so-and-so is. So-and-so does such-and-such and I don't. Then I had a realization. It was about my friend Jana, and I told her this, too. She and her husband like hiking and they take their kids hiking. And took them even when they were very young (which they still are). In my mind I always thought, "I don't take my kids hiking when they are a month old." Or camping, or do crafts all day, or frolic in the pool, or decorate the house all cute-like. Then it occurred to me: I don't hike. With or without kids, I don't hike. Jana hikes. I don't. And both ways are good. I yell at my kids, I'm impatient with my kids, my house often looks like a tornado came through it, and some days we don't even leave the house. I'm going to put that on pinterest (not really because I'm too lazy to figure out how to pin on pinterest). And hope that no one turns me in.

But I do tell them many times a day that I love them, I smother them with kisses and hugs, and I DO give them food and a fairly clean home. I have always thought that, if at the end of the day they are alive, fed, and laughed, loved, and learned a little bit, then I've done my job.

At our house we do Easter simply. They got a couple chocolate bunnies and about a dozen jelly beans. Then the candy and coins from the Easter egg hunt. I know some people do lots of gifts and it's almost like Christmas, but we don't.










This is a picture of Dave, who right now is putting together a desk thing for my dining room. I said tonight, "how about for FHE we go to Walmart and buy that desk thing I want for the dining room." And we went and got it and he's putting it together as we listen to Radiohead. I know I talk too much about Dave. I simply adore this man. I was out to lunch with a friend and a friend of hers a couple months ago. I mentioned how I'm not a naggy wife (at least I don't think I am one). And my friend's friend said, "how can you NOT be a naggy wife?" He is not a naggy husband, and that makes it easier. I think the fact that I don't nag (much) allows for him to happily buy this desk and happily put it together for me.

Fake Plastic Trees


This is Norah jumping up saying "Happy Easter!"